by Carol O'Connell

I was born and raised in New York City, so I do my own consumer product testing. When it comes to books, I prefer the Absorption Test: if I can ride the A train to lower Manhattan just before dawn without looking up more times than minimum self-defense would demand, the book's a winner. I kept my eyes on Carol O'Connell's first novel, 'Mallory's Oracle', from Times Square down to the World Trade Center--the equivalent of two sewers in stickball.